


Limits

by ImmrtlMrtl



Category: Pocket Monsters: Sword & Shield | Pokemon Sword & Shield Versions
Genre: F/M, Slow Build, Slow Burn, Slow Romance
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-03-12
Updated: 2020-12-07
Packaged: 2021-02-28 19:08:08
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 9
Words: 17,178
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23122243
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ImmrtlMrtl/pseuds/ImmrtlMrtl
Summary: You wake up in the Slumbering Weald but you don't know how or why. You're not from around here, but you've got to figure out how to make it through until you can get home.Pokemon AU where you are from this normal, everyday universe but after a feverish night wake up in the Pokemon universe in the Galar region.No rating yet. Will add tags and characters as the story progresses. Be a slow burn because I'm a glutton for punishment. I mean a real slow burn. Enjoy the ride.
Relationships: Nezu | Piers (Pokemon)/Reader
Comments: 37
Kudos: 276





	1. Careful What You Wish For

**Author's Note:**

> I haven't written fanfiction for a long time, but I fell in love with the Pokemon Sword game. Maybe it's nostalgia, but I love it. This little idea popped into my head. Bear with me while I work out. Hope you enjoy!

The first thing you could remember was that your head hurt and it felt like the backs of your eyes were on fire. A fever. You didn't want to open your eyes as you remembered the previous night. Sick with fever, waves of nausea, and a headache to champion all headaches. You had taken some sleep aid and washed it down with Nyquil and passed out.

You felt a gentle breeze and a subtle humidity on your face. At first, it felt nice on your warm, flushed cheeks, but then you became very aware that your bed should not be breezy or humid. You calmly opened your eyes, light causing the lids to flutter until adjusted. Though they still burned hot from sickness, you were sure what you saw was not the ceiling of your bedroom but open sky. Bright and white sky that pricked your skin with little water droplets. No, not sky - fog. What you were seeing was fog, thick and humid.

When you became aware of an eerie howling, you sat up and looked around you. Your head throbbed with a still angry headache, but there was no denying you were not home relaxing in your own bed. The earth felt cool and damp beneath your fingertips and you could smell the moist dirt. It smelled like life and rain. The howling was soft but wild, sounding all at once like it was right in front of you yet all around you. It didn't hurt your already pained head.

You leaned forward and shifted your legs beneath you. When you placed your palms on the ground to push yourself up, you instead came nose to nose with... something. Something animal and alive. Suddenly hyper aware of your mortality, you didn't make any sudden movements and instead simply shifted your eyes to look up and meet amber eyes surrounded by black fur that held your gaze. You tried to focus, tried to see what this was. Pink and blue fur surrounded the black fur of its eyes and... it only had one ear. Though far more canine than cartoon in person, you recognized this dog-like creature. Zacian.

No. This was a dream. There was no way this was possible. How sick were you? A thousand thoughts flooded your head but one was far more dominant than the others. Battle. This wasn't your own thought. Was it Zacian influencing your mind? This was stupid and absurd. Pokemon weren't real, this wasn't real. You were just delirious. As if in response, you felt angry and the thought became loud. BATTLE. Delirious or not, this dream wanted you to battle it.

"I don't have any Pokemon," you whispered. It didn't matter, though. Zacian bared its teeth and you could see the saliva dripping from its fangs. This was definitely not an illustrated likeness of the legendary beast. And since when did you dream so vividly?

Suddenly, there were voices. Children's voices, it sounded like, and they were calling for a Wooloo. The Zacian's one ear twitched as it heard them too. It lifted its head to look in the direction of the sound. At that moment, a Yamper jumped from the bushes, putting itself between you and Zacian. It yipped a small, timid warning and the larger, much stronger dog turned and padded softly away toward the voices.

Yamper looked back at you and its tongue lolled out of its mouth. It began to pant as it turned toward you but your energy was spent. Waking up in a strange forest, with a surreal encounter with not one but now 2 fictitious creatures, on top of your preexisting illness... you'd had enough. Your eyes rolled into the back of your head and you fell back to the cool earth. The last conscious thought you remember having was _did that Yamper just try to protect me?_

\------

Yellow. That was your next thought. You didn't feel a heat in your eyes or a throbbing in your head so you knew whatever illness that had plagued you was gone. You vaguely remembered a strange dream about Pokemon. How many hours had you invested in that game to cause such a strong hallucination? Before you opened your eyes, you couldn't shake the thought of the simple color of yellow. Strange.

When you sat up in bed this time, you took in your surroundings in a fully conscious state. This was not your bed, or your house. The yellow-furred object balled up at your feet told you you may not quite be awake from this dream yet. The ball in question moved, what appeared to be a stomach rising and falling with breath. The walls were lined with books and you could still detect the faint scents of earth. Plants in a greenhouse maybe? This was a lab. And that was a Yamper. And this was not even a bed but a couch.

"OH! You're awake!" Came a voice from your left. "I'm sorry... I didn't recognize you, I didn't know how to get you home so I brought you to my lab. I'm Sonia."

Sonia. With her bright red hair and... she hadn't donned her lab coat yet. If you were going to be in this dream for awhile, it would be best to get a general idea of the timeline you'd landed in. She twirled a thick strand of curly red hair around her finger while she looked at you expectantly.

"O-oh, sorry. I'm (y/n)." Your voice came out heavy and groggy and you cleared your throat. "My name is (y/n)." You reiterated, your voice much stronger and more confident the second time around. This must be Sonia's Yamper then. You couldn't fathom why, but this kind of made your heart sink. The idea of a wild Pokemon coming to your rescue in the woods... even if this was a delirium-fueled dream.

"What were you doing in the Slumbering Weald? It was bad enough Leon and I had to go after Hop and Gloria and that Wooloo, but we thought we'd stumbled on a body finding you and that Yamper out there. He's cute, by the way. I'm a fan of them myself."

Not her Yamper? Your eyes snapped over to the still-sleeping form at your feet. "It's not mine. It's wild." You stated calmly.

"Well... I'd say he's not wild anymore! Do you have a pokeball? We can make short work of the question of ownership real quick. He was guarding you when we found you. Once we realized he wasn't mourning his recently deceased owner, we had to show him we were only trying to help. Then he followed us here, so we just assumed..."

Why did your heart suddenly feel so big and warm but simultaneously light as a feather? That Yamper... it did try to protect you from Zacian. It was also guarding you and now watching over you. You didn't have a pokeball. Would Sonia realize you weren't from this world if you admitted you didn't have one? Would she question it? Out in the Slumbering Weald without a Pokemon or pokeballs to catch wild ones? You had to think of a cover in case she asked... but what could you tell her?

"No, I... I had gotten lost trying to find a friend's house. I'd heard it was in Postwick but I wasn't entirely sure. I must have gone too far..." you lied through your teeth and hoped she bought it.

"Without any Pokemon for protection?" She asked.

Oops. Think fast! "Yea... I'm actually not a trainer. I don't have any Pokemon. I've done pretty well to stay out of the wilds most of my life. I usually travel by train or flying taxi." Could Sonia see the giant lump in your throat you were struggling to swallow?

"Oh, of course! Well, looks like you'd better learn to be a trainer now! Here, you can have one of my pokeballs for this little guy. He chose you, so I don't think you have any choice but to choose him back." Slender, well manicured fingers deposited a red and white ball into your hand. A standard Pokeball.

At this action, the sleeping Yamper stirred and looked at you with drowsy eyes. Upon realizing you were awake, it suddenly awoke with a fiery energy and waggled its way to your face to greet you. You showed it the Pokeball, "Well... it's nice to meet you, Yamper. Do you want to come with me?" You asked, remembering the way Ash used to ask in the very early TV series. Was that weird? You glanced sideways at Sonia to check really quickly. She didn't seem perturbed so you turned your attention back to Yamper. Its tongue flopped out of its mouth as if in answer and you took that as a positive thing. Then you froze as you suddenly realized you had no idea how to actually USE a pokeball. You only ever saw the throwing movement in the show or "used" a ball from a game menu. Did you press the button and touch the Yamper? Did you just touch it and the button was for downsizing and enlarging? Was it a release to let out the Pokemon inside? Your gut tightened. This was how they would become suspicious of you.

"Just push the button and touch him with it." Sonia offered helpfully. "How come you don't know? Have you really never been that involved?"

You shook your head. Better cover this up! "My dad was a trainer but he uhhhh... he passed away." It wasn't a lie. Your dad raised and trained German Shephers to sell to police forces. Though he wasn't dead in your world, he didn't exist in this one.

"Sorry to hear that." Sonia spoke softly, but her words were genuine and you almost felt guilt but you told yourself you'd have to lie later if anyone asked about your parents. It was safer to say they'd died.

You nodded and pressed the button on the pokeball and touched it to Yamper's shoulder. There was a bright flash of purple light and then it was gone along with Yamper. The button on the pokeball glowing as the ball rocked gently. When the light faded, there was a soft click. Almost just as sudden and without provocation, the ball snapped open in another blinding flash of purple light and Yamper reappeared, tongue lolling happily at you.

"Well... he let you catch him, but it seems he doesn't particularly like being in that ball." Sonia explained. You smiled and gave a short chuckle, remembering the earliest episodes of the Pokemon show in which Pikachu refused to be in his ball too.

You reached out and tentatively patted Yamper on the head, not sure where your boundaries were, and then quickly learned there were no boundaries when Yamper dove into your arms. Well then... if you were going to be stuck in this dream, then you might as well make the most of it. It was time to start figuring out how to fit in to this world and make a life. At least until you woke up. This was some fever.


	2. If I'm There

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> I just really like Yamper, ok?

_Here's what I'm certain of_ , you thought to yourself. _I'm in the Pokemon universe somehow. I think it might be Pokemon Sword specifically, but I won't be certain until I find out who the gym leaders are. I caught a Yamper... or maybe he caught me, I don't know. I'm in the Galar region, probably sometime around the time the gym challenge starts and Hop and the main character set off. Sonia had said Gloria, so I assume it's the female main character. Or maybe Victor exists too. Leon has been here, so may have already endorsed the 2._

You sighed. This was harder than you thought it would be, trying to orient yourself. You had so many questions and no way to find answers. Oh, how you missed Google. You had been puttering around Sonia's lab for the last week now, learning to care for and train your Yamper. It had been helpful but also exhausting, walking on eggshells, trying not to let on that you knew more than you were supposed to. You had mentioned Zacian to Sonia when Hop and Gloria had told them of their run-in with him, but only that you had also met the creature. You only did so out of hope that she would take the kids seriously.

Speaking of kids, you were a little older coming to this realm, being in your early twenties. Pokemon seemed like such a kid's game or show, and yet here you were, living the life of it. You wished there was someone besides Yamper that you could confide in. You had told the little beastie everything and he avidly listened to you, but he didn't have any answers either.

Once you had felt confident enough that you could care for Yamper on your own, you said your goodbyes and thanks to Sonia and left the little town of Postwick. You weren't sure where you were going to go, but you couldn't stay at the lab forever. Even if Sonia insisted she was okay with it. She had become a good friend in the short amount of time that you'd known her, but you wondered how much of that was because you knew more about her than she had ever showed you or told you. You even knew her future. It was a lot to hold onto and a lot of risk the longer you stayed. Any small slip of the tongue could give away that you were not who you said you were - a non-trainer from the Kanto region. Since you weren't a heavy gamer and had actually missed a few of the games, and even the later shows, you thought it best to go with the Kanto region. Less chance of slipping up.

You found yourself at the train station in Wedgehurst, Yamper in your lap and a pack on your back, waiting on a train to take you to Motostoke. Sonia had seen to it that you had everything you needed to be a new, albeit late, Pokemon trainer. You hadn't caught any other Pokemon in Postwick or Wedgehurst, but you had trained your Yamper to at least level 10, knowing that that would lay a good foundation for you to make it further along the various routes. If this universe held true to the games anyway.

You found yourself reflecting on how you came to be here, as you so often had in the last week. At home, you were a busy university student and it had been a particularly stressful week of exams. A lot of late night study sessions and camping out in the library to cram every bit of knowledge in that you could. You'd been so busy and so stressed that you'd fallen ill with a very aggressive flu. Nyquil had been your only friend the last few days. You had snuck in sessions of Pokemon on your Switch while you'd tried to rest. On the night you last remember being home, you had been taking sips straight from your bottle of Nyquil while playing your Switch when you passed out. You'd then woke up here. Well, not here, but in the Slumbering Weald. What had you done differently? You'd fallen asleep several times while playing, especially during this bout of flu. You couldn't remember at which point in the game you were. Maybe that had something to do with it.

A voice boomed over a speaker system to announce the arrival of the train to Motostoke. In the game, at this point in the story, you knew the train ride for Gloria and Hop gets interrupted due to a flock of Wooloo on the tracks and part of you wondered if it would play out like that for you. You helped your Yamper to the floor and then stood and made your way to board the train. You didn't know where the Champion's brother and his friend were in their journey, so maybe your trip was not the one to be interrupted.

As you stood up from your chair to board the train a thought borrowed it's way into your mind. You hadn't tried convincing yourself this was a dream in the last couple of days. Almost like it was starting to become real. You tried to shake the thought from your head but you couldn't help but be sad as you watched Yamper trot out onto the platform, gleefully ready to board the train as well. You hoped it wasn't a dream... you had become quite fond of the little creature in just a short amount of time. What would he do without you? What would you do without him? You forced yourself to climb the stairs onto the carriage despite the heaviness in your heart.

There were no Wooloo on the tracks. You arrived in Motostoke without issue, much to your relief. While you were curious to see the wild area, you didn't know if you and Yamper were up for it yet. He needed to be stronger and you needed to have more Pokemon so he wouldn't have to battle alone.

Motostoke was huge and smelled industrial. The sounds of iron on iron could be heard from almost every street in the city it seemed. You didn't know where you were when you'd stepped foot off the train. In the game, you came in the front gates and it took you some time to get your bearings. You figured out you were on the upper level of the city and would need to head down a tier to get to the shops and the Pokemon center near the entrance the player utilizes, but that was the one you wanted.

You managed to find one of the elevators to the lower tier and praised whatever was listening that it was the one that lowered to the main street stretch. Navigating this world was a lot more difficult when you were in it and not just observing from a screen. You didn't take too much time to look at the shops that lined the road, eager to get to the Pokemon center. You would explore the shops afterward.

You opened the door to the Pokemon center, eyes falling on Nurse Joy behind the counter with a bright smile on her face. Her enthusiasm was far more captivating in person. You approached the desk, looked down at Yamper who'd been faithfully on your heels the whole time. Though you didn't battle on the way, you still figured a little refresher wouldn't be unwelcome to the little guy. You called him into his Pokeball and handed it to Joy. She happily obliged and put it on the platform, initiating the healing process.

When she returned the Pokeball to you, her smile widened, "Are you here for the gym challenge?"

"No, I'm not strong enough and my Yamper isn't ready. Besides, I'm a little too old to be doing the gym challenge, I think. We're just interested in watching." You made conversation while you stowed Yamper's Pokeball in your pack.

"Well you're in luck! It starts today. Here in about 2 hours actually. You should go early to get good seats!"

"Oh sure. Thank you, I think we'll do that. Once we peruse the shops." You didn't imagine shopping would take all that long. After all, you only had the coin Sonia gifted to you before you left. You didn't want to risk losing all you had in a battle you weren't confident in, so you were budgeting.

You motioned to Yamper to follow you and he enthusiastically bounded to your side, trotting out the door with you. He seemed much more bouncy and it made you smile warmly. It had only been a week, but you certainly did love the little dog. You figured you could get some treats for him at the Battle Cafe so you stopped there first. The shopkeeper asked if you wanted to battle for a free treat.

Tentatively, you agreed under the condition he'd go easy on a beginner. He nodded in acceptance and the battle began. He chose a combee and you obviously sent Yamper to the fight. The first chance you had to attack, you asked Yamper to use nuzzle in order to paralyze the opponent. He did so and the combee froze up in paralysis. It still managed to do a gust attack which did a decent amount of damage to Yamper. You quickly dashed out onto the field to spray him with a potion. For the next attack, you had Yamper use tackle which did a significant amount of damage when it landed critical. You shouted in praise at Yamper and then cheered your encouragement to keep it up. The combee once again sent a gust hurtling toward Yamper but the little dog dodged, having learned to anticipate the attack and being more focused from your encouragement. As a finishing move on the combee, you instructed Yamper to bite. He lunged at his opponent and sunk his little fangs in, causing the combee to lose consciousness.

For a moment, you just stood in disbelief, Yamper wiggling his way toward you. You snapped out of it when he lightly butted his head into your shin. "WOW, YAMPER!" You suddenly began to cheer and praise him. "That was an incredible first real battle. I'm so proud of you!" You dug your fingernails into his warm fur and gave him praising scratches while he panted eagerly, soaking up all the attention.

The shopkeeper gave you a sweet for Yamper and a handful of cash. _So that's actually a thing. People just pay each other for battles. Fantastic._ You thought as you carefully stowed away your winnings in the money pocket inside your pack. You offered Yamper a treat and he gratefully accepted. The 2 of you left the shop and once again found yourselves out on the main street. You could smell the flowers from the flower shop across the way and you smiled, indulging in the way the scent made you think of sunshine and springtime.

You were about to walk across the street to admire the flowers when you heard shouts and cheers toward the city entrance. You and Yamper looked toward the sounds and your breath caught in your throat by what you saw. A procession of gym leaders that you assumed were on their way to the stadium for the opening ceremony of the gym challenge. This was your chance to see if you had been brought to the Galar region of Sword or of Shield. You pushed through the throngs of people that had suddenly appeared, seemingly out of nowhere, until you stood on the edge of the sidewalk. Worried Yamper would get stepped on, you quickly bent down to pick him up. Holding him in your arms, you watched. Not being the main character had its perks. You didn't realize there was such a procession beforehand.

It appeared the gym leaders were walking by in their correct order - Milo, Nessa, Kabu, aaaand... Bea. There it was. All you needed to know. She was followed by Opal and then Gordie and then..... Piers. What your heart did at the sight of him made you hyper aware of an alarming thought.

"Oh no..." you breathed as Yamper tilted his head at you in curiosity.


	3. Enough, Enough Now

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> My favorite band is nothing like what I actually listen to.

The gym leaders' procession carried on to the lift and then to the stadium. You had taken a position in the back of the crowd, but with enough space to still observe. At this distance, you couldn't see much detail but you could at least see the big picture. Milo led the way, waving with a big cheery grin as he walked confidently. He was built like a tank, a proper "farmer" you felt. Gardener was the word that came to mind with the green color scheme and that hat, but you don't get muscles like that unless you're doing some heavy lifting. Throwing hay bales and the like. You knew he was actually a herder of grass type Pokemon, but you liked to picture him feeding a barn full of Mudsdale.

Nessa was, in a word, exotic. Very tan and wearing a blue uniform. She looked like she belonged in some warm, tropical area as a marine conservationist. Maybe Australia. You always enjoyed her gym and her bubbly personality on each of your playthroughs. She was pretty up there on your list of favorite characters, if only because you thought she was a fantastic role model for young, impressionable girls. 

Kabu walked by next. You always thought he looked like he just finished a workout, or was just getting ready to start one. He was actually a little intimidating. Maybe it was the red colors alerting you to danger or that it was a color used to represent anger.

Bea and Opal followed next, looking like complete opposites. No Bede though. You reminded yourself that hadn't happened yet in the timeline. You were not supposed know. As for the current gym leaders, Bea's bare feet were always what stood out to you. She reminded you of a certain blind earth bender from a cartoon in your own universe. Fleetingly you wondered if it was possible to travel to other worlds when you figured out how you managed to get here. 

Gordie... Eh, you had to admit you considered him a minor, secondary character. You had no thoughts about him or his appearance.

Your eyes naturally traveled back to Piers who was walking with Raihan. Or sulking along beside him or something. His appearance in person was just as unique. Black and white hair, that striking pink, white and black getup. The spikes everywhere. How often did he accidentally dig himself with those boots? Not that you were judging him. He was, by far, your favorite character in the games. You wouldn't ever admit it to your friends out loud, because it felt childish, but you even had a little crush on the guy. Which was suddenly much more intense watching him walk with the dragon-type leader Raihan.

You hadn't even considered how you'd feel to meet these characters. If you could even meet them. You were content to just explore quietly, experience this world as detached as possible because you knew eventually you'd have to go back, but for now... maybe it wouldn't hurt to stand out and go full throttle, experience everything you could before you had to go.

You glanced down at your Yamper, a new sort of resolve filling you, and you vowed to try to figure out what your calling here was. You weren't going to up and join the gym challenge, even if you were strong enough, it wasn't exactly your cup of tea. You were so engrossed in your own thoughts, you didn't notice Piers scan the crowd uninterestingly and stop his blue-gray eyes on you, so far in the back, with your Yamper and muted colored clothing. As you turned your attention back to the procession, he turned his face back forward.

Now that you had made up your mind to completely engross yourself in this world while you were here, you felt lighter, less restricted. You waved to passersby as you and Yamper made your way to the stadium, you smiled and made friendly conversation with the league staff outside of the stadium. When you entered, they informed you there was a cover charge but seating was first come, first served. You paid the meager entrance fee and got your ticket when you heard a voice behind you.

"(Y/n)!" Turning to look over your shoulder, you saw Leon and Sonia approaching you. "You made it! Are you going to watch?" Sonia asked you excitedly.

"Oh yes. I'm eager to see how professional trainers battle. How are you, Champion?" You asked. You'd met him before, though it was brief and he must have left Wedgehurst shortly after because you hadn't seen him but that one and only time during your stay at Sonia's lab.

"I'm great! Eager for an entirely different reason!" Leon exclaimed. "My little brother is competing this year. I might actually be a little nervous."

You grinned, happy to see that he had such high hopes placed in Hop. Though you knew Hop would not win and he would instead study under Sonia, for now, it was just nice to admire and celebrate Leon's optimism.

"Do you want to sit with us? I've got front row seats, right behind all the gym leaders and Leon, of course." Sonia asked.

"I couldn't. I just bought general admission." You admitted a little sheepishly.

"Nonsense. I'll get you in. Give that ticket back to the league staff member there and just ask him to give it to someone who'd like to see the show but can't."

You nodded and turned back to the ticket master. Handing your ticket back to him, you explained what Sonia had just suggested and he nodded in understanding and set the ticket next to his mug on his desk. Then the three of you entered the stadium, though Leon ventured through a side door and separated from you two. Must be going to his own dressing room and entrance, you figured.

When you found yourself exiting the long, dark tunnel entrance, you saw you were underneath the stands. There were stairs leading up into them and you followed Sonia, careful not to get separated in the crowds. When you climbed the first flight of stairs, you veered off to the left to go take your seats. Sonia was right, there was a section for the gym leaders roped off and she took you to a set of 4 reserved seats behind.

"Normally Hop, Gloria, and Marnie accompany me, but this year they're all gym challengers, so we have the free seats." Sonia explained to you. "Marnie is gym leader Piers's sister. You know of Hop and Gloria, of course."

You knew about Marnie too, though you couldn't tell Sonia that. You watched her select her seat and then settled in beside her. Being friends with the champion's old rival seemed to have its perks. You suddenly had a realization as you sat down in your chair. Piers was here... in the game, he had been missing from the ceremony. You could have sworn you'd seen him in the procession outside, you were not going entirely crazy, were you? Had it been wishful thinking?

It was then that you felt someone slide into the chair beside you and your skin felt electric. Yamper was here, but you had become used to the natural static he emitted. Your body was tense, the exact opposite of the ease with which he slumped into his chair now. "I don't like being a part of these things." He said nonchalantly. Careful not to move too fast, or make yourself look like a fool, your eyes moved sideways to see who it was, though you already knew.

Piers. He didn't even sit in the section reserved for the gym leaders. "I know I'm a gym leader and I should be out there, but... I don't know you, do I?"

You turned to look at him this time. Was he addressing you? When your eyes met his, you knew he was, "No, I don't think so."

"I'm Piers." He introduced himself, offering his hand for a handshake. You lifted a hand to grip his, trying not to make it seem like you were eager to do so as your heart did flips in your chest. He was even more breathtaking up close and _in person_.

"(Y/n)." You replied. You had almost wanted to tell him you knew who he was. That wouldn't have given away too much. He was a gym leader and a lot of people knew him. Still, though, he took the time to introduce himself to you, the least you could do for him was act like he was just a regular person.

You had several thoughts running through your mind as you held his hand firmly. The first one was that you couldn't help but notice how rough his hands felt. Probably from plucking away at strings and writing music. You had expected them to be soft with how pale and tired he looked. The second was a funny one. That maybe the reason Piers didn't appear in the ceremony in the game was because he was sitting with you in the audience. You made a mental note of it, to scan the crowd a little better to look for him the next time you got a chance to play that scene again.

When he let go of your hand, you were relieved to hear Chairman Rose begin the ceremony and give you a reason to tear your eyes away from Piers and not sit in awkward silence. And what a ceremony it was, if you'd been able to relax and actually pay attention. All you could feel was the tension in your body, how hyper aware you were of every movement you made, and your heart pounding against your rib cage like it was trying to beat down a door.

Indeed, what a ceremony it was.


	4. Never Know

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm not completely emotionally invested in this story going a certain way that I will ignore or be upset at suggestions. 
> 
> So please make suggestions! I don't wanna burn out! :D

Somehow you managed to actually focus on the ceremony. So much so, in fact, that you didn't notice that Piers was focused on _you_. You watched Chairman Rose give his speech and you watched the gym leaders make their way onto the field after his introduction. They formed a line and created a commanding presence out there, as if their simple act of being there was a power move. Then you watched as the gym challengers were introduced and they all walked out onto the field as well.

This was the first time you'd been able to see Hop and Gloria. Though the kids had briefly visited Sonia while you stayed at her lab, you hadn't actually caught a glimpse of them. You were surprised to see that Gloria was not the default female design, but the female character that you yourself had designed. Your in-game version of you. It was very strange and you couldn't understand what that meant, but for now you were content to go with it.

When Marnie walked out onto the field, Piers leaned forward in his chair, becoming even with you. You hadn't realized you'd been leaning forward, focusing intently on the show. "That's my sister, Marnie. I'm quite looking forward to our battle." He explained to you. It seemed foreign to you that Piers was talking to you as if you were already friends. You hoped that was a good sign. Though you also knew you'd have to relax and contribute if you wanted to continue that friendship.

"I don't have any siblings." You spoke softly, "And I'm not really a Pokemon trainer, either. So I suppose I'm not sure what it's like to look forward to battling, let alone with a sibling."

"Is this not your Yamper?" Piers asked curiously, gesturing to the Yamper that was glued to the side of your leg, ready to protect you if needed.

You chuckled a little bit, "Yes, he's mine, but he's a fairly new development."

"I'd like to hear about it." Piers said warmly, invitingly. Had he intended to make your heart stop? Did he know he was? Was he just being friendly?

"I'm afraid it's a bit more of a story than I could tell in the remaining time here today." You said, trying to steer the conversation a different direction.

"Well... what are your plans? Where are you off to after this?" He asked.

You realized you didn't know the answers to those questions. "Actually... I don't know. Yamper and I were kind of just... going with the flow." You said.

You had been so caught up in the sudden conversation with Piers you hadn't realized the ceremony had ended and the crowds were standing and beginning to move out of the stands. A couple of people flocked down to greet the gym leaders who'd sat in front of you at some point. A few of them wanted to meet with Piers as well. He gave you an apologetic look as he agreed to take selfies and sign autographs.

"Are you ready to go?" Sonia asked curiously.

You couldn't help but look over to Piers, longing to finish that conversation and see if he'd have invited you to join in any of his plans, but he looked a little caught up and busy. You looked at Sonia and nodded almost regrettably, "Yes, I'm ready." You grabbed your pack and motioned to Yamper to follow as you fell into step behind Sonia and left the stadium.

Piers's gaze followed you as you exited and he felt instantly guilty about catering to his fans instead of finishing his conversation with you. He'd found you interesting and curious and wanted to know more. He decided he'd try to catch up with you at a later time while also kicking himself for not grabbing your contact information.

You didn't actually know where to go from here. Maybe a stay in the Budew Drop Inn would be sort of fun. You could stay the night and then maybe venture out into the wild area tomorrow morning to catch another Pokemon. You still hadn't purchased any pokeballs but you could also do that in the morning at any of the shops. Motostoke seemed quite busy and buzzy with just about anything you could imagine. As if on cue, your stomach growled. Perhaps a bit of the local cuisine might be in order before anything else.

You and Yamper took the lift down to the main street after saying your goodbyes to Sonia, promising to meet up again soon. You couldn't help but like her, even if you didn't stay around her. You had a feeling she was on her own path and encouraging you to try to find your own. Which was just as well because you wanted to wanted to experience so much before you woke up from this dream.

On the fly, you decided to first go shopping. You wanted clothes that would better help you to fit in here. You were wearing just a standard pair of jeans and a plain grey hoodie, but you remembered the adorable outfits in the shops throughout the Galar region. You quickly dipped into the first clothing shop you saw right on the main stretch. Carefully browsing the racks, you picked out a couple of outfits. Checking the price tags you figured after this you would probably be needing to battle more trainers. This was going to near on clean you out. Plus you had to be careful to set aside enough to eat after this.

Entering the dressing room, you pulled the curtain on your stall shut behind you. You tried on a few different combinations before settling on a cute dark red double breasted blouse that had a hi-low hem with black trim around the sleeves and neckline. The collar was high, buttoning on your neck at turtleneck height. The front of the blouse rested perfectly atop the pleated grey skirt you picked out while the back trained behind you to look like part of the skirt. You picked out a pair of white leggings and pair of Victorian style boots that laced up at ankle height and had a lower heel for comfort. It was very steampunk, a style you really enjoyed but could never pull off in your own world.

You took the tags off the clothes and kept wearing them to the counter. You handed the tags to the shopkeeper who rang you up and told you your total. It was surprisingly less than you were expecting. She indicated the sign at the register that said 35% off for ceremony day. When you left the shop, you felt like your new getup was going to attract a lot of attention, the way it would in your universe, however no one even batted an eye. You took a few steps, loving the way the back of your blouse and your skirt moved and fluttered in the wind. You would probably need a coat or a jacket, but for now you didn't think you needed to worry about it.

You had been walking all around the lower part of Motostoke when you happened upon a little cafe that smelled amazing from the outside. Spices and fried foods tickled your sense of smell and you swallowed the sudden increase of saliva in your mouth. Drooling now? You must have been hungrier than you thought. You pushed the door to the cafe open and saw several people inside. There were a couple of Pokemon scattered here and there with their masters so you figured Yamper would be welcome outside of his ball too. The health violations this would have been in your own world... you shook your head a bit.

Walking up to the hostess, you were about to offer your name to get a table when a voice spoke from behind you.

"Piers. Table for 2, please." Your heart stopped and you felt your entire body stiffen. _Oh come on, (y/n)_ , you thought to yourself, _you're too old for some schoolgirl crush..._

Turning to face him, you smiled warmly. "You and Marnie come here often?" You asked him, trying to hide the hint of hopefulness in your voice that maybe Marnie wasn't actually with him.

"Marnie has continued on the gym challenge. It's just me. And I seem to have accidentally asked for a table for 2 out of habit... maybe you'd like to join me?" He asked. The hostess suddenly seemed all aflutter, gathering menus quickly and giving a little curtsey to Piers. Being famous must have its perks.

It surprised you how he seemed so much more confident than you expected. In the game, he seemed shy and not very outspoken unless he was behind a mic. You felt like a bumbling child in comparison, though pleasantly surprised that your voice betrayed none of it. You simply nodded, "I was going to ask for a table myself anyway, so I might as well."

"Good. This place has the best curry in Galar. So if you plan to be visiting long... you might find other places don't quite meet your standards after this." Piers gave a little half smile that looked like a smirk and you both followed behind the hostess.

On the way to your table, you had a sinking feeling in your gut. One on one with the adorable gym leader... having a conversation in which he might ask several questions. Several questions that if you weren't careful, might give away something about your situation that you needed to guard carefully. You didn't want someone, especially Piers, to think you were a complete lunatic who needed to be treated in some facility somewhere. Your thoughts were cut short when you arrived and the hostess seated you both, setting down menus and silverware. She nodded on Piers's direction and asked if she could get the two of you anything else and he shook his head and thanked her. She quickly scurried away, obviously star-struck and trying to avoid making a fool of herself in front of him.

You smiled inwardly at the girl's nervousness because that was you earlier today. And still now... you realized with a slight dread. _Please don't make a fool of yourself either..._ you thought to yourself. Being star-struck was not a very comfortable feeling while being asked to have dinner with said star. Piers seemed to be very modest about the whole thing so you made up your mind to not make a big deal out of it either. You would treat him like any person you met at any time.

"So where are you from?" Piers asked. It was a simple question, small talk, but it filled you with anxiety.

 _And so it begins..._ you thought nervously.


	5. Said & Done

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Still taking suggestions if you have any! Thank you to Roz for the suggestions made in the comments on the last chapter. I've incorporated a few of them, I hope you like it!
> 
> That being said, I'd just like to say that the chapter titles don't really have any relevance to the story so please don't abandon me because this one is called "Said & Done". It's far from it! I'm just getting started.
> 
> Edit: Yooooo, I just signed in on a computer and not my phone. My chapters are pretty short? Lol. I'm sorry! It feels so much longer on the app. My bad!
> 
> Edit edit: puppuphk pointed out my lack of knowledge on Pokemon regions and accents which was majorly helpful. Fixed some of the chapter thanks to that! Hopefully it's a little more accurate! Thank youuuuu!

You remembered telling Sonia about being from the Kanto region so you figured it would be best to try to stick to that as much as possible without giving away too much.

"I'm from here and there. Kind of all over the place, really. Though I was born in Cerulean City. When my parents passed away, I decided to come here. I was looking up a friend of mine that I thought was living in Postwick, but I ended up being wrong. That's when I met Sonia." You explained carefully.

Piers seemed to be regarding what you were saying, carefully mulling it over in his head. Did he not believe you? Had you already screwed up? "I thought I'd detected a different accent." He commented and you froze.

"My parents are from Unova?" You quickly blurted. Suddenly digging into obscure facts you'd gathered here and there. It really had been awhile since you'd had anything to do with Pokemon as in-depth as the Sword and Shield games.

Piers seemed to accept that well enough, someone would be more apt to adopt the accent of whoever they spent the most time around while learning to speak. "Postwick hm? Is that also where you met Yamper?" He asked. At the sound of his name, Yamper's ears twitched toward Piers and he gave him a careful look until his tongue lolled out of his mouth as usual when he was at ease.

"Yes. I didn't really have much desire to be a Pokemon trainer. Kind of got forced into it."

"Same thing tends to happen with gym leaders sometimes. I love bein' a Pokemon trainer, though." Piers explained.

"Well... how did you become gym leader?" You asked. It was a genuine question. The game didn't really go into much detail on the subject, apart from Bede also being forced into it in a bootcamp type fashion.

"I guess I was good enough and I was gettin' popular enough with my music that it just sort of happened. I tried to incorporate both but it's at a point now where I have to make a decision to dedicate my time to one or the other." He idly stirred the ice cubes in his drink you had been completely oblivious to the waiter dropping off. 

You had a glass of water sitting in front of you as well. You reached out for it and gratefully sipped on it. It had been a little while since you'd had anything to eat or drink and you hadn't realized it until your parched throat threatened to shrivel up inside your neck. The water instantly quenched your thirst and you turned your attention back to Piers. He seemed a little lost in thought.

Before you could ask, the waiter came over to take your orders. He turned to look at you expectantly. Ladies first, you assumed. "I've never been here before. Could I just have whatever Piers orders, please?" You asked. The waiter nodded and turned to Piers instead.

"I'm not a big fan of spicy foods, so I pick out pretty mild curries. Is that ok with you?"

Another shocker. He seemed like someone who would enjoy spicy foods. You didn't quite know why; it wasn't a trait you would see by looking at someone. "That's fine with me. I'll trust you on this." You gave him a small smirk and he chuckled a little.

"Then we'll just each have a mild chicken curry." He told the waiter and the man asked if they'd like anything else to which you both shook your heads and he walked away toward the kitchen.

"So... you mentioned having to choose?" You offered, trying to encourage the conversation to continue.

"I said before I was excited to battle my sister. Truth is, I'm hopin' to beat her. I think she would make a far better gym leader than myself. That would take her out of the championship and she'd have to come back to Spikemuth. I think she'd excel at bein' a gym leader." Piers admitted cautiously, "Does that make me a terrible brother?"

You shook your head, "No. I think it makes you a great brother, actually. Not that I have any siblings, so I wouldn't know personally. But it takes a lot to admit when someone else can do something better than you. Especially if you're passionate about it. But... what if she wins the championship?" Yes, perfect. That'll throw him off the scent of your backstory, feign you don't know Marnie doesn't win. Your anxiety eased a bit with that small victory.

"Then I'll have to just do what I think is best when the time comes." Piers answered simply. It was actually way more profound in your mind, that one little statement could be applied to your situation as well. Just do what you think is best when the time comes. If the time came and if you had that choice.

"I think that's a fantastic idea." You smiled and leaned back in your chair, crossing one leg over the other as you got more comfortable.

"You did a little shoppin' after the ceremony, I noticed." Piers suddenly made a sharp change in subject.

You felt warmth rising in your cheeks and couldn't help the blush forming, "Yea... I figured I'm visiting, I may as well. I don't typically do a lot of shopping but it's an unfamiliar place, I can do unfamiliar things."

Piers gave you a wide smile before one corner of his lips turned up into a smirk. Did he notice your blush? "You have great taste." He said. It was a compliment without being too forward. Was he flirting without actually flirting? Or was that just your wishful thinking?

"Thank you..." You said quietly. It wasn't often you got compliments and you were honestly shocked at the grace with which you accepted it. In your own life, you would have fiercely rejected it. Why was it so easy here?

"You've really never had any Pokemon before Yamper?" Piers asked you. These subject changes were going to give you a heart attack the way your anxiety fluctuated each time.

You shook your head, "My dad was a trainer but he uhhh... he was gone before he could teach me. And I was on a different path so I don't think he would have attempted it even if he were still... here." It wasn't fake sadness you were struggling to hold back. In the real world, you had been uninterested in your dad's line of work training police dogs. You'd instead been pursuing a career as a veterinarian. Similar, but not the same. He wasn't dead, you reminded yourself in your head, but the way this "dream" was going, you did wonder if you'd ever see him again.

"I'm sorry. That seems like a sensitive subject. Let's talk about something else?" Piers offered. He was extremely intuitive, you realized.

"No, it's ok. I just miss him is all. He'd have loved it if I brought a Yamper home, I think. He'd have also laughed that I'm struggling so bad to train him." You gave a light chuckle as you reached down by your side to pat Yamper on the head affectionately.

"I could help you? If you wanted? It'll be at least a week before any of the gym challengers make it to Spikemuth, so I don't have to leave immediately. We could go to the wild area and train him, maybe catch more for your team?" Gym Leader Piers was offering to train you to become a Pokemon Trainer. That felt ironic in some ways, but besides that, you felt the butterflies in your stomach pitching and rolling.

"I'll uhhh... I'll think about it. It sounds wonderful, in theory." You said. You were about to elaborate when your food arrived. You gave Piers an apologetic look and you both seemed to silently agree that the conversation could be picked up again after your meal.

Typically, most foods in video games and animated television shows always looked way better than their real life counterparts. Being physically in this world, the food looked way more appetizing. You always thought the illustrated curries in the game looked absolutely amazing. You'd tried a few curries in your own life, mostly Japanese or Indian, occasionally Thai or Chinese, so you knew you'd like this overall. The expectation was that it couldn't be as good as the picture, and it did a marvelous job of exceeding those expectations of yours when you took that first bite. Now you didn't think you would ever be able to look the same at those pictures again. This was amazing. You had eaten in this universe before this and everything did seem to have more flavor but nothing related to the real world food you had had before now. It had been dishes made from the food available in this universe, namely berries that didn't exist to you. Curry was obviously made with these same berries, but you'd have something similar to compare it to. Even the rice, normally bland and mostly tasteless, exploded with flavor in your mouth. It was incredible. As if you needed any more reason to dread being sent back to your own world.

When you both had finished your meals, the waiter dropped off the check directly into Piers's hand, not even giving you a chance to look at it. You opened your mouth to protest, wanting to at least pay your half, but everything happened so quickly there was no time to react. Piers had already slipped the payment into the booklet and handed it to the waiter. You sat back in your chair and regarded him for a moment, "Will you at least let me pay you for my half of the meal?" You asked him.

"There's no need. I come here with Marnie normally, so it's the same price as it always is for us." He waved a hand dismissively, then leaned forward to rest his elbows on the table.

Not wanting to push the subject and potentially offend or irritate him, you nodded, "Well then... Thank you for dinner. It was fantastic." You said softly, "And I mean that. It was actually fantastic. I believe you've ruined my visit to Galar entirely. So... Thank you for that." You gave him a playful grin.

Piers laughed unexpectedly, "You're welcome and I'm sorry." His brow furrowed once he stopped laughing and he spoke again, "So... How about lettin' me help you?"

"Oh you were serious about that. I thought you would have changed your mind during the meal, to be honest... So I didn't think too much about it. I don't really want to burden you anymore than I already have." You suddenly felt the last waves of your confidence leave your body. Surely at this point, Piers was just being nice. Everything had been too much of a coincidence, running into him at the ceremony and then here... You knew he had things to attend to.

"It's really no burden. I wouldn't have offered if it were." He tried to explain to you.

"Tell you what... How about we just exchange information and if you're still up for it, let me know say... Tomorrow? And if I'm ok with it by then, sure. If not, then I can at least tell you I've had time to think about it and that I'll be alright on my own?" You offered quickly. By now, all of your thoughts were becoming too much to bear. You were not sure if you wanted to risk getting close to him in any capacity. What if you woke up in your own world tomorrow? You didn't want to catch more Pokemon, it was bad enough you were already so attached to Yamper and knew it wasn't forever. You had wanted to experience as much as you could while you were here, but you hadn't considered the possibility of becoming attached to anyone or anything. Even if this WAS a dream, it felt very real and was very vivid and you knew when or if you eventually did wake up, you'd be left with these emotions regardless.

Caught up in your own thoughts, you hadn't registered Piers's own thoughtful expression. Then he agreed with your suggestion, "Yes, I think that would work for both of us, then." Was it just your imagination or had he switched from light and friendly to stoic and professional? No, it wasn't your imagination. You swallowed the sudden lump in your throat and stood up as he did. The both of you exchanged information on your Rotom phones.

"Thank you again, for dinner." You told him as you both made your way to the door of the cafe.

Outside, Piers turned to you and said, "You're welcome. And... I'll see you tomorrow." He gave you a playful smirk and walked away in the direction opposite the one you had planned to take. You stared after him with your mouth agape. Maybe it wasn't a shift in attitude you'd picked up before. Maybe a fake confidence, the kind that borderlines arrogance. Was Piers actually more shy than he was letting on? Nonetheless, the almost-sadness you had felt when you thought he'd switched tones was now gone. Even if you decided not to meet with him tomorrow, you felt like this wouldn't be the last time you would see the gym leader. With that thought, you made up your mind to go stay at the Budew Drop Inn. You figured they would have vacancy since the ceremony was over and the gym challengers moved on.

As you walked, you felt something in your hand along with your Rotom phone and you shifted it out from behind the device. Piers's League Card. You smiled to yourself, tucking it away into a safe pocket on your pack. Your first real life League Card.


	6. Running in Circles

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So sorry there was a longer time between the last chapter and the new chapter. Life got a little busy and I'm an aunt now!
> 
> Nonetheless, here's the new chapter and if you still have ideas to contribute to the story, I'm all ears!

Arriving at the Budew Drop Inn was almost inspiring seeing the statue of the hero that saved the Galar region long ago. It was by no means a luxury hotel, pretty standard but in most cases a lot of hotels seemed fairly "luxury" to you. As long as there wasn't noticeable untidiness or pests of any kind, you were not very picky. This place was clean, well built, sturdy and industrial like the rest of Motostoke. As you walked in you passed the statue and began to ascend the right staircase when a couple of Team Yell members walked by you going down the stairs. You couldn't help but stare as they did so, the colors of their outfits reminding you so much of the man you had just finished having dinner with.

You couldn't help but smile to yourself when the female grunt of the team stopped and looked at you. "Hey. Aren't you the one our Piers was just with?" She asked you. You stopped suddenly and looked at her. The last thing you wanted was trouble from Team Yell. Yamper pressed his body against your leg and focused on the woman. He didn't snarl or anything, he just provided reassurance that he was there to keep you safe.

"Well... Yes, but I think it was purely coincidental. I suspect he meant to go out with his sister and there was a change of plans." You explained carefully. She seemed to eye you up and down and then scoffed and kept walking. You glared after her, a little irritated that she had scoffed at you. Just what was that all about? You still had no desire to make an enemy of Team Yell, so you decided to just brush it off.

The hotel had seemed to calm down a lot since the gym challenge ceremony concluded hours earlier. There were still a couple of challengers, stragglers that hadn't quite kicked off their journey yet. You knew most of them would be bested and wouldn't make it past Kabu. So the stragglers you were seeing here still were probably the ones who weren't focused or passionate enough to push that far, which was ok, in no way were you judging them. you had enjoyed exactly one serious battle in your time as a trainer and it was some difficult stuff.

Thinking about that battle had you remembering Piers's offer as you walked to the front desk. You'd have to answer him about whether or not you wanted his help bettering yourself as a Pokemon trainer.

"Can I help you, miss?" The attendant at the counter asked.

"Oh yes, please. Do you have any vacancies? It's just me. Aaaand Yamper." You said, almost forgetting to add your small friend to the order as well. You looked at him apologetically, but he didn't seem to notice or mind with his tongue still flopping out of his mouth as it usually did.

"Of course. We do have availability since the gym challenge is now underway. How long will you be staying with us?" He asked as he was typing on a tablet that he cradled in his arm.

"I think just a night. Is there an option to extend if I want to stay longer?" You asked curiously, figuring in case of unforeseen circumstances you could stay a few nights if needed.

"Absolutely." The clerk reassured as he finished tapping away on his tablet. He set it down and handed you a key. You handed over your payment for the room for the night and then turned toward the elevators.

You motioned to Yamper to follow you and walked over to press the call button. When the lift arrived, the two of you boarded and you turned to watch the doors close behind you. In no time at all they were opening again to the second floor. You and Yamper stepped off and looked down each direction of the hallway. A sign on the wall had a range of numbers and arrows, your room number falling in the range to the left. So you turned left and began to make your way down the hall, Yamper happily skipping ahead of you. He went too far past your room when you stopped to unlock the door and then came bounding back to you, which made you laugh. When you pushed the door open, the sight you saw made you breathe a sigh of relief. The room was cozy and modern, with a bed, a wardrobe and a TV. There was a door to the bathroom. Fairly standard hotel room, but the bed was a welcome sight indeed. After a week of sleeping on a couch in a lab and then traveling by train here, you were ready for some luxurious comfort. Apparently, so was Yamper, for he took off like lightning and was curled up on the bed before you barely had time to blink. Had he tapped into a quick attack to move that fast? Your hair felt light and floaty with the static he left in the air. You shook your head with a chuckle, _electric pokemon_ you thought.

You set your pack down by the wardrobe and your Rotom phone floated out, blinking with a notification. You read the name on the screen and your face flushed. Piers. You had planned to message him once you were settled but he had obviously beat you to it. You took the phone in your hands and opened the message.

_If you really don't want to meet up tomorrow, that's only a little disappointing, but fine with me. But you should come check out one of my concerts in Spikemuth. I'll get you a backstage pass. I know the band._

You couldn't help but laugh. Pressing reply, you began to type _Yes._

There was the ding of an almost instant reply. _Yes to which?_

_Yes._

_A good answer. Goodnight for now?_

_Goodnight for now._

Had you really just agreed to meet with the gym leader after all? It seemed like such a bad idea to get close to anyone, especially him, knowing you could be ripped away at any moment. There was a part of you on autopilot that just couldn't help but be drawn to him. That was the part of you that you had no strength to fight. It wanted you to see Piers and so you would.

You couldn't help but stare at the screen expectantly for a little while longer before you flopped onto your back onto the bed, sinking into the comfy white blankets. Yamper looked over at you, disturbed by your movements and then yawned and laid his head back down. You ruffled the fur on his head fondly and then grabbed the remote from the bedside table to turn on the television.

Hop and Gloria had already made it through the first gym. Unbelievable. Even in the games, the gym challenge felt a little faster paced. You saw Marnie had made it through too and a few others. Milo seemed a bit more like a warmup than an actual challenge. Though you knew it was probably harder than they made it look.

You suddenly wondered if it would be possible to get to Hulberry to watch the battles with Nessa or if it would conflict with the plans you had made for tomorrow. It would be awesome to watch her. It would also be awesome to keep your plans with Piers and expand your team of Pokemon.

Just then Yamper stirred and walked up to happily lick your face and you laughed but grimaced at the same time. "Gross!" You exclaimed while wiping your cheek with your sleeve. "What do you think, Yamper? What kind of Pokemon do you want to add to our team tomorrow? Should we stick with electric types or just mix it up as we go?"

Yamper tilted his head at you and you chuckled. "Seeing Nessa battle would be pretty cool. But we could also just wait to watch her in the semi finals, right?" You weren't exactly eager to leave the bed or the hotel to get to Hulberry on time. And if you'd hoped to see Hop, Gloria and Marnie battle with Nessa, you'd have to leave now in order to make it on time, you assumed. It was best to just wait until Wyndon Stadium.

You could feel excitement in anticipation for what the future here held. You wondered if you would be able to sleep at all tonight, but you didn't have to wonder long. You quickly fell into a deep slumber, comfy with Yamper in your arms and the white noise of the television on in the background.

When you awoke the next morning it was to a message from Piers. _I'll come meet you in the lobby of the Budew Drop Inn. I assume that's where you stayed last night? Let me know when you're ready. I'm not far from there._

Your heart rate quickened and you all but jumped out of bed, running barefoot to the bathroom so you could shower and get dressed. You suddenly realized your clothes were nowhere to be found. You remember getting up to take them off last night when you had awaken briefly but you had just left them beside your bed. Where had they gone? You didn't need to wonder long. Hanging in the wardrobe was a bag labeled "laundry" and you realized housekeeping must have picked them up and washed them for you. You sighed in relief and took the bag into the bathroom with you.

The shower felt amazing on your grungy body after traveling. You couldn't believe you hadn't showered before bed but oh well. You made quick work of washing up, shampooing and conditioning your hair as well. When you stepped out of the shower, you got dressed quickly and began to dry your long, (h/c) hair with the provided hairdryer. Putting on clean clothes was also a luxury. How did the gym challengers do that whole camping thing all time?

You quickly sent a text to Piers and told him you were ready. He replied back with a quick _On my way_ and you nervously turned to Yamper. "Well? How do I look? Are we ready?"

He did his signature tongue flop out of his mouth and grinned. You took that as a good thing and motioned for him to follow you. The 2 of you made your way down to the lobby and the elevator doors opened on the first floor just in time for you to see Piers walk through the hotel entrance. He walked up the steps as you walked out past the front desk and you both stopped in front of each other.

"Good morning." Piers greeted you slyly and you couldn't help but smile at him.

"Hi." You replied simply with a similar sly edge to it. 

"Are you ready?"

"I think we are." You affirmed and Piers motioned for you to take the lead. You walked down the staircase and out the front door with the gym leader at your side. Now you didn't have a choice.

You would have to be ready.


	7. Come Undone

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Oi I am SO sorry, everyone. I have been gone AWHILE. Shortly after becoming an aunt, I found out I am also going to be a mom. So it's been hectic and I apologize. I won't promise to stick to a schedule but I will try to update as I can!

It wasn't much of a walk before you found yourself descending the stairs of the main Motostoke entrance with Piers at your side, Yamper happily trotting down the stairs in front of you. You kept stealing sneaky glances his way, evaluating him in small increments. The dark circles under his eyes didn't seem as dark today and you wondered if it was because he'd been well rested or if it was just the lighting of the daylight.

Once you'd reached the bottom of the stairs, Piers motioned for you to follow him to a merchant posted nearby. You watched him purchase a few pokeballs and nest balls. You quickly remembered from the game that nest balls were more effective the lower the pokemon's level. You knew at that moment that Piers was going to help you at your pace, not his, and that gave you a fairly large sense of relief. You wouldn't need to try to be better than you felt you were.

You stepped up to purchase your own when he stopped you, "I bought these for you. You don't need to purchase your own." He explained as he handed them to you.

You looked down at the objects now in your hands and then back up at him, "Are you sure? I couldn't..."

"You just did. Come on." He didn't give you any more chance to argue as he marched out onto one of the paths.

In person, the Wilds seemed... much more wild. You could see the beams of light where you assumed the dynamax pokemon were. There were several wild pokemon visible as they played and dashed through the grass and the brush. In the taller grass, you could see movement but couldn't spot the creatures making the grass sway so. You stayed close on Piers's heels, worried you'd lose him or get caught in a situation you wouldn't be able to handle on your own.

Then you saw it. You stopped dead in your tracks and watched closely. Eevee. Of all the pokemon you could have seen... Eevee was one of your favorites.

A little further up the path, Piers noticed you were no longer with him and looked back at you. He followed your gaze to the Eevee in the grass and made his way back to join you at your side. He too watched the little pokemon play for a moment before leaning into your ear. "Are you going to send in Yamper?"

You jumped, almost forgetting anyone was with you at all. "Oh um... yes?"

"Scan it with your Rotom. Might give you a bit of insight into its level." He offered helpfully.

You took your phone out of your pack, along with a nest ball, just in case. Scanning the Eevee showed it was a level 9. Yamper was level 11 at this point.

"It's going to be a tough battle, but you won't risk overkill and not being able to catch it." Piers explained, "It's up to you."

You nodded and decided that you'd have to fake confidence because it didn't seem to be coming to you on its own. You swallowed heavily and stepped forward. Yamper became aware of the sudden change in attitude and walked out in front of you, successfully gaining the Eevee's attention and then the battle began.

Piers was quick to provide you instruction, advising to do a heavier attack first and then use smaller attacks to lower the Eevee's HP until it could be caught.

"Yamper, lead with Bite!" You commanded, watching as your faithful little dog did as instructed. Once he landed the attack, he tried to jump back but Eevee executed a Quick Attack and managed to get a hit in. Yamper still managed to escape outside of attack range after the hit, but you winced as you noticed he had a scratch on his shoulder. You hesitated to give another command.

"Look at his face." Piers spoke behind you and you jumped a little, almost forgetting he was there. "It's easy to be concerned when they are hurt, but that's when I watch their face. Yamper is determined to help you, to protect you, he hasn't given up yet."

You followed his gaze to Yamper's expression and sure enough, his focus was intense on Eevee. He was not going to back down, so you knew you couldn't either. Filled with new resolve, you shouted, "Tackle it, Yamper!" Yamper quickly ran forward and crashed into the Eevee, taking both of them to the ground. Before Eevee could recover, Yamper was up and dashing back out of the way.

"Now." Piers said, "While it's down."

You took a Nest Ball from your pack, pressed the button to enlarge the ball and tossed it. It was a perfect throw, appearing to almost gravitate toward the Eevee. The beam of light shot forth and enveloped the Eevee before both disappeared and the ball fell to the ground, the button glowing. The ball began to rock and you felt your heart rate quicken in anticipation. Once... twice... three times... and then it clicked and the glow went out. You stared in apparent disbelief, failing to notice Piers smiling at you, trying not to laugh.

He began to walk toward the ball and you quickly shook out of your trance and followed him. Once you got there, you bent down to pick it up and Yamper excitedly ran around you, yipping with excitement. The ball shrunk once more in your hand and you tucked it into your belt, easily retrievable.

"Well I'm impressed." Piers smirked at you, "Now you've caught your 2nd Pokemon."

"It's actually my first." You said. "Yamper sort of caught me."

Piers laughed, "I've got one like that too. It happens. It's good he did, think he knows what he's doing."

You couldn't help the feeling of pride that burst up into your chest and resulted in a beaming smile in Piers's direction, "Thank you so much! That was... exhilarating!"

"Of course, I'm really glad we-" He was interrupted just then by his Rotom phone ringing. He looked apologetically at you and you nodded in understanding, turning away from him and walking a few paces down the path to give him some privacy.

It wasn't a long phone call and before you knew it, Piers walked up behind you. Upon hearing his footsteps, you turned to face him but he looked almost crestfallen. You raised an eyebrow at him in curiosity, "Everything ok?"

He furrowed his brow before speaking, "Everything is ok, but I fear I have to cut our day short. The first gym challenger already made their way to Stow-on-Side. They haven't challenged Bea yet but typically once they get through Kabu, they're pretty quick to work their way through the challenge. I'm willing to bet they'll challenge her before the end of the day and be on their way by the evening. If they are victorious anyway. This means I need to make my way back to Spikemuth." He almost winced a bit when he made eye contact with you, but quickly composed himself and appeared to be evaluating your reaction.

You couldn't help but be a little disappointed but you didn't want to tell him that, and you hoped your expression didn't betray you. He was a gym leader, he had responsibilities, even if he didn't want them. It was admirable how dedicated he was to keeping his commitment, as much as it inconvenienced him. You smiled warmly, "I understand. Maybe we'll run into one another again down the road."

Piers's smile matched your own in warmth and he seemed almost relieved that you weren't upset with him, though he knew you were a little disappointed, no matter how brave a face you wore. He extended his hand for a hand shake and you were once again shocked at how delicately he held your hand when you reciprocated. "I would enjoy nothing more."

And with that, he turned to walk away from Motostoke, through the other part of the wilds, probably headed to that smaller, more isolated train station to catch a ride back. You were sad to see him go, a lot more sad than you thought you'd be. Had you been so hopeful to get closer to the gym leader in a single day? How silly of your fluttering heart.

With his absence and your plans dashed apart, you felt a little emptiness and tried to come up with a game plan. Maybe head back to Motostoke, heal up Yamper and Eevee and try your hand at catching a few more Pokemon before you continued on your own little journey? It was as good a plan as any, you supposed.

Yamper continued to watch Piers's retreating figure over a hill until you called for his attention and the 2 of you started walking back toward Motostoke.


	8. Burning Out

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I don't have a whole lot to say this time, but thank you to those of you who have commented and left kudos. I get email notifications almost every day and it's so lovely. Feel free to keep making suggestions. I have noted them and will try to use them!

You and Yamper found yourself standing in front of a giant Corviknight flying taxi, debating whether or not you wanted to spend the last bit of money you had on going somewhere or if you should travel on foot. Would it take you long to catch up to the gym challenge? It's not like you had to challenge the gym leaders and spend a lot of time in each city.

The thought of just going to Spikemuth tickled the edges of your mind and you shook your head. No, you didn't want to make assumptions, Piers was just helping you out, he had no interest in anything else you were sure. And even if he did... you couldn't get close to him. There was the obvious problem of potentially disappearing back to your own world to contend with after all.

"Excuse me, ma'am... are you unsure of where you're headed? You've been staring at that map for a good minute." It was the taxi driver addressing you that snapped you out of your mind.

"Oh... No. Yes. I mean maybe? I just don't have a whole lot of money and I don't know where to go to start... start something? I guess." You admitted sheepishly.

"Well, what are you trying to get started?" He seemed genuinely interested in helping you out.

"I just started building my first Pokemon team and I don't know where to go to train up or catch more."

"I'm really sorry, miss, but that's honestly very vague. You can find Pokemon and Pokemon trainers anywhere to help with both of those things." He offered a helpless but concerned smile.

"I know. I'm sorry. I think I'll make my way on foot for awhile." You finally decided out loud. "Sorry to have wasted your time!"

"You didn't, but I wish you luck!" He chuckled.

Feeling your face get hot with embarrassment, you turned away from him and walked back into the city. You decided on stopping at a Pokemon center real quick to heal up both Yamper and Eevee. The nearest one was the one just before Route 3 and the exit from the city you planned to take, but just before you got there, your Rotom phone chimed. You pulled it from your pocket and felt your heart flutter. Piers.

You could barely open the message fast enough. _I sent you a gift. You can access it at any Pokemon center. I'd recommend opening it before you leave Motostoke._

What could he have sent you to any Pokemon center? He was a gym leader so he could probably pull some strings to get the centers to cooperate with a giveaway of some generic item or whatever. You still couldn't help but feel grateful, and also eager to see what he may have sent to you.

You arrived at the Pokemon center and entered, going straight up to the nurse and passing off your Eevee and also encouraging Yamper into his ball to be healed. When your Pokemon were returned, you released Yamper once more, noticing that the scratches and marks from the battle with Eevee were now gone, completely healed. It was impressive technology. You figured the nurse may be able to help you with Piers's gift so you showed her the message you'd received.

"I would check the PC over there. That's where I normally send everything for my family and friends. And it can be checked at every Pokemon center." She suggested.

Of course, the PC. The one link between all centers, how could you not have thought of that yourself? It was really difficult to orient yourself in this world sometimes. You thanked her and went to the PC. Having never signed in, you were a little confused and unsure how to proceed. There was someone who could help you though.

You once again opened your phone and dialed Sonia. She answered on the 3rd ring, apologizing for taking so long, she had been doing some kind of dynamax research in the field. Fair enough.

"Sonia... I know this might be weird but I don't know how to access the computer networks here. Can you help me?" You asked her.

"Oh yes! Of course. And it's not weird. I would imagine yours are different than ours. Your Rotom phone can get you started, it will upload all the necessary data to the PC and then you'll create a unique user ID and password. It'll then help you set up a trainer card so you can access it with the card later. Or you can continue to use your Rotom. Completely up to you."

"Ok, so... Rotom phone, then, yes! Start upload! Thank you, Sonia, you're a star."

"No problem! Call me if you need anything else at all!"

She hung up and you turned your attention to the upload bar. It was moving relatively quickly and was finished before you knew it. It asked for an username and password which you entered. It was always your default username and password for most things internet in your own world, so it was simple enough. After that it asked if you wanted to set up a trainer card or go to your PC, and you took note of the little blurb at the bottom that assured you you could create a trainer card later. For now, you decided to continue.

Right away a message popped up and alerted you to an available gift. You selected the view option and it took you to your Pokemon Box. Why? Piers didn't send you a Pokemon did he?! You felt your stomach doing flips. How could you return this to him? It was too much, he shouldn't have done that. That was more than just helping you out. Curiosity got the best of you and you accepted the gift. Maybe you could return it via the box once you opened it?

The Pokeball rolled out of a little dispenser tray in the bottom of the kiosk and you examined it closely. Better wait until you were outside to check what it was. Could be a giant Pokemon and you'd inadvertently destroy the Pokemon center.

Outside of the Pokemon center, you looked at Yamper with the Pokeball in your hand. "What do you think, Yamper? Should we check it out?" As if in answer, Yamper yipped excitedly and spun in a circle. You had to admit you were curious what kind of pokemon Piers saw fit to send to you. You decided not to keep yourself in suspense any longer and you released the pokemon inside, tossing the pokeball away from you.

Eyes wide, you watched in anticipation but you smiled softly when you saw a Zigzagoon appear. It had the Galar region coloring of black and white with pink eyes, reminding you very much of the gym leader himself. The little pokemon excitedly ran toward you, dropping something into your hand. When you looked, it was a small envelope. A letter?

_Don't think it was too much to send you this. They're very abundant in Galar. This one has been idle for too long and I figured he'd get more from you than from me. I meant to give you this in person before I got called away unexpectedly but I- well, I got called away unexpectedly. Please don't try to return him, I think he'd be quite sad. I might be as well, but I'd never admit to it. If you returned him to me, that is. I am not sad about parting with him. -Piers._

You looked at the Zigzagoon and how he and Yamper were already sniffing and greeting one another. You supposed you could keep him then, if only for the sake of not making anyone sad.

"Well, I guess you're staying. If it's for a good cause and all." You said to him. His eyes appeared to light up with happiness and his sharp little teeth showed through what looked like a smirk. What a quirky thing! You called him back to his Pokeball and stuck him onto your belt next to your Eevee.

With no hesitation this time, you marched out onto Route 3. You would have to send a thank you to Piers when you stopped for the night.


	9. Kingdom of Cards

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Ok, I know the Pokemon selections in this chapter do not appear in route 3 in Pokemon Sword, but I'm using my creative license to break the rules.
> 
> Also, hello :) I'm using a suggestion made by one of the commenters in this chapter. I hope you like it! I'm still receiving almost daily emails with kudos and comments and I'm so glad some of you like it so much. Warms my heart!
> 
> Keep the suggestions coming. And to the person who commented that you look forward to the story to help you get through a breakup, I wish I could update more often for you! But know I'm thinking of my readers and am constantly coming up with directions I hope to take with the story when I next get a minute to sit down and write it out.

Outside of Motostoke on the path that would start Route 3, you found yourself in a drastically different environment. It was almost amusing how the industrial city could still be heard (and smelled) behind you, but a vast stretch of country spread out before you. You could see items dropped in the paths already and thought it was almost comical how that was actually a thing. You could also see a small spattering of pokemon trainers along the path ahead, no doubt seeking battles. You now had a team of 3, and you felt ok with the odds of that. If your memory served you right, the trainers along Route 3 did not have all 6 of the allowed pokemon on their teams. Though if you had to fight multiple trainers in a row, you might find yourself struggling. It was the risk you knew you'd be taking by deciding to walk the gym challenge route. You spared a glance in the direction of your Yamper and he did not look the least bit concerned. In fact, he looked almost determined and you smiled warmly as you remembered Pier's advice to look to Yamper's face when your confidence wavered. It proved to be useful even outside of battle.

As if on cue, you heard a small voice call out to you, "Hey! Are you looking to battle?" You turned your head toward the sound and saw a younger girl approaching you. She couldn't have been more than 16 years old, probably not even that.

You and Yamper looked at each other before you nodded in acceptance, "We'll battle you." You confirmed. The girl's face lit up and she flashed a beaming smile at you. You couldn't help but return the smile.

Battles in the wild were a little different than the cafe battle you had before. The young trainer didn't hesitate to throw out her Pancham and you couldn't help but find the little panda-like creature to be exceptionally cute. Quickly you shifted your mindset to be more serious and decided to call out Zigzagoon first. The expression on the girl's face was one of shock as she had apparently expected you to use the Yamper so obviously out in the open. She didn't take long to recover though before she commanded her Pancham to execute an Iron Fist. You hadn't had a chance to look at your new Zigzagoon's stats and you silently berated yourself for not doing so. You scanned him with your Pokedex quickly and found his abilities to include Pickup, Gluttony, and Tackle. Being more of an offensive fighter, you quickly shouted at Zigzagoon to counter with his Tackle. While Pancham was using Iron Fist to raise the effectiveness of his punching attacks, Zigzagoon slammed head-first into him and wrapped his paws around him, successfully bringing the Pancham crashing to the ground.

Pancham struggled for a moment to get up, and you saw the girl run out onto the field to spray a potion onto him. He had no problem getting to his feet after that and once more she asked him to execute an Iron Fist. Did Pancham have no offensive attacks? "Zigzagoon, tackle him again!" You called out to your pokemon. He confidently ran away from the Pancham to build speed and then turned to run toward him, once again slammed into him and bringing him down to the ground. This time the Pancham did not get back up. The other trainer looked on sadly as she called her pokemon back to his ball. She walked up to you and you extended your hand for a handshake. She smiled solemnly and took your hand, giving it a firm shake, "Thank you for the great battle." You told her. She grinned and handed you a small bag of money.

"To the winner goes the spoils!" She said cheerfully.

You had to admit, it felt good to have a little pocket change again and you gratefully accepted. Once you'd finished your exchange and called back Zigzagoon, you started your journey down Route 3 eagerly.

 _Ok, so I have to admit battles are a bit of a rush._ You thought to yourself as you walked. You were carefully keeping an eye on your surroundings, watching the movement in the tall grass with some caution. While you were extremely interested in catching more wild pokemon, you were also torn between keeping your party fairly uninjured or not fainted in case of further trainer battles. You wondered if you could text Piers and ask advice on how to find that healthy balance between the two when another trainer spotted you and began to flag you down. This time you went confidently into the battle, knowing your team was leveling up and learning quickly.

The trainer used a Budew and Gossifleur and you used your Eevee and Yamper. This battle went much quicker and seemed much easier. You weren't sure if it was because your team was getting stronger or if you were getting better as a trainer, but you decided to just go with it. It wasn't long before you were shaking hands and he was handing you a small coin purse as well. You realized then you'd probably struggle the most with keeping your confidence from becoming an ego. After all, the bigger they come, the harder they fall and you weren't interested in that fall.

As you continued on your journey, lost in your thoughts you hadn't realized a wild pokemon had jumped out of the tall grass and blocked your path until a flash of flame burst past you. You narrowly dodged it before Yamper had ran out in front of you to take the attack head on. Your eyes widened as you watched the scorch marks appear on his body. You felt your entire world zero in on Yamper as you realized it was your lack of situational awareness that got him burned. What had burned him though? You followed the direction the attack came from with your eyes as you knelt beside Yamper to check on him. He seemed alright aside from some mild charred patches of fur. Your eyes found your attacker rather quickly, a Growlithe. Another one of your favorites, but this one was different somehow. Was it... Was it sparkling? There was no way on God's green earth that you would just STUMBLE on a shiny Growlithe in the wild for a potential 4th party member on Route 3, come on. This couldn't be real.

Yamper got slowly to his feet and shook off the attack. "I'm sorry, boy, I promise I'll pay more attention from now on, that was completely my fault. Thank you so much for saving me." You told him apologetically. He licked your face reassuringly and then turned to face the Growlithe, ready to battle, apparently. You readied a pokeball. Real or not, you were going to attempt to catch it.

Surprisingly, Yamper expertly took the lead on this battle, expertly carrying out attacks without your commands while you simply watched. It was mesmerizing and made you feel so proud of him for helping you out when you were so obviously struggling with focus. Soon enough he had the Growlithe weakened and he dashed back to stand beside you, waiting for you to throw your pokeball. You did so, feeling a sense of teamwork between the 2 of you unlike anything you'd felt before. The pokeball made contact with the Growlithe and the enveloping light consumed him, sealing the ball as it fell to the ground. It rocked once... Twice... Three times and then click! You couldn't believe it. You'd managed to catch a shiny Growlithe for only your 4th party member. How could that even be possible? You had to tell someone, anyone.

You pulled out your Rotom phone to do just that when you heard a familiar voice call out to you. "(Y/n)!" You turned in the direction of the voice to see Sonia waving at you as she approached. "I saw the whole thing! You've really improved!"

"Sonia! It was a shiny Growlithe, did you see it?" You asked her excitedly, hardly able to contain yourself.

"Of course I saw it. Please don't think I'm a creep, but I watched your first 2 battles too. You really are improving! Did you have help?" She asked curiously as she began to pull out a briefcase and set up some strange equipment.

"Yes, a little. Someone helped me catch my Eevee and taught me a little bit about relying on my Pokemon during battles. I didn't know Yamper would take the lead if I was struggling like that." You mused thoughtfully.

Sonia had finished setting up the equipment at that point and held our her hands, "Give me your Pokemon. I'll heal them. Prototype portable healing equipment. Similar to the poke centers, just not ready for mass production yet." She explained briefly.

You called Yamper into his pokeball and handed your now party of 4 to her, watching her intently. "Did you invent that?" You asked her curiously as she handed your newly healed pokemon back to you. Now you could use your new Growlithe right away. Yamper immediately left his pokeball to join you at your side once more.

Sonia shook her head, "I did not invent this, no, but it does come in handy doesn't it? I'm not supposed to give any details about it, if I'm to be completely honest." She spoke quietly in case anyone else was nearby to hear her as she packed the equipment back into the unassuming briefcase. "And take these. I'm sure you'll need them now that you're progressing as well as you are." She placed a burn heal and an escape rope into your hand. "The Galar mine is on your path ahead, were you aware of that? I'm not sure you'll want to go in there right away but the path around is being worked on so you can't exactly avoid it. That escape rope will help you in a pinch but I'd really suggest considering going back to Motostoke and taking a flying taxi or something if you're worried." Sonia looked at you with concern in her eyes.

"Thank you, Sonia. I'll consider it. I'm not too keen on dark, damp places anyway."

"You're right. Humid and foggy is more your thing, isn't it? Like the Slumbering Weald. With no pokemon." She giggled. Even if you were on separate paths, it was nice to have a friend to banter with in this short interim. "So who helped you?" She asked curiously.

You felt a blush creep up into your cheeks, and you kind of hesitated before you finally admitted, "Gym leader Piers."

"Piers?! I didn't realize he'd have time for something like that! Why are you blushing, (y/n)?" She asked with a cheeky grin.

Trying to avoid making eye contact with her, and ignoring the question, you quickly offered, "He didn't! Have time for that, I mean. He helped a little but then he was called away."

"I didn't realize the 2 of you were making those plans at the opening ceremony when I saw you chatting a bit." She looked apologetically at you.

"Oh no! We weren't. We were literally just chatting but then we ran into each other again a little later. That's when he offered to help me out and I accepted." Not wanting to risk being called out on your little schoolgirl crush, you were quickly changed the subject. "What about you? What have you been doing?"

"I was just in Turrfield doing a little Dynamax research but now I'm trying to catch up to Hop. He's really quite exciting, a lot like his brother."

"So I've heard. Where is he now? Where is the gym challenge at as far as progression? Last I heard someone had made it past Kabu and was on their way to challenge Bea."

"You heard right. That's where they're at, and that was Hop you'd heard about. He's quick to move through this, but Gloria, Bede, and Marnie have been close on his heels. Are you interested in catching up to them, (y/n)? I'm headed back to Motostoke for a few things, and then I plan to catch up to them too. But we could walk back to Motostoke together and you could catch a flying taxi there to Stow-On-Side. If we hurry, you could probably catch the match." Sonia asked.

You found yourself mulling it over in your head. While you had enjoyed being out on the road and exploring, you were not too interested in sleeping under the stars and doing the camping thing. Camping was fun when it was an activity, not a lifestyle, and the idea of a hotel with comfortable beds and temperature control was just too much for you to deny. You found yourself agreeing to Sonia's proposal and the 2 of you began the trek back to Motostoke.

You had been quietly pondering why you hadn't heard from Piers. Normally, he beat you to communicating when you had a plan to reach out to him. In your head you had decided to thank him for the Zigzagoon once you had settled in for the night, and you still had several hours before that, but he would typically pop up with some reference to whatever you had been thinking somehow. Was he busy? Had he made it back to Spikemuth ok? You suddenly remembered in the game Team Yell had locked Spikemuth down until Marnie arrived, maybe he was under said lockdown. You couldn't help but worry slightly, but told yourself to just stay calm for now.

"You're quiet." Sonia commented suddenly.

"Oh... Yes, I just have a lot on my mind. A lot has happened since I left Postwick." You mused.

"That's right. Did you ever find your friend you were looking for when you got lost in the Slumbering Weald?"

"No I... I guess I don't know where he could've gone..." It was a weak excuse and did not sound convincing of your reason for being in Galar at all. "I suppose I just figured I'd travel along and maybe I'd catch word of him. And if not... Maybe I'd just go back to Kanto and hope for the best. There's only so much you can do."

Sonia nodded in understanding, "It's hard to keep in touch with people overseas... I hope when you go back to Kanto you and I can keep in touch.

"Of course we can! And if not, then I'll just come back and look for you the way I did for him too!" That argument felt much more convincing than just _I don't know where he could've gone_. Still, you felt bad for having to lie to someone you now called a friend. Maybe one day you would be able to tell her the truth. You clung to that hope more than you anticipated. It would be nice not to lie to your friends.

"And I travel so much, you'd probably have trouble finding me too!" She laughed as the conversation finally smoothed over and became easy once again. Another bullet dodged.

It wasn't long before you found yourself back in Motostoke with Sonia, both of you headed into the pokecenter real quick. Sonia made a few purchases for her travels, and you decided on some items for your pokemon. A couple of potions, some burn heals, and even a couple extras you hadn't experienced a need for yet like paralyze heal and awakening. Better safe than sorry.

Once your business had concluded the two of you headed back outside where Sonia explained this is where you'd have to part. She had some extra things to do in Motostoke and didn't want to hold you up. You both hugged briefly as you said your goodbyes and you carried on your way. You went straight back to the Flying Taxi you had spent so much time debating at before and the "driver" waved cheerily at you. "How was Route 3?" He called out to you.

You grinned sheepishly. "I found what I was looking for, at least." You both laughed. "This time I'd like to go to Stow-On-Side, if you please."

"Of course! Glad you figured it out." He said warmly as he accepted your payment. He helped you into the taxi and shut the door behind you, with a word of caution to "buckle up" and then you waited to have your first Flying Taxi experience in this wild world you had been thrown into.


End file.
